Communication system and communication method, communication apparatus  and control method for the same, and storage medium

ABSTRACT

In a communication system including a first apparatus and a second apparatus, the first apparatus transmits to the second apparatus a signal that requests information for connecting to a network. Then, in response to receiving the signal from the first apparatus, the second apparatus determines whether or not another apparatus connectable to the network is present within a communicable range of the second apparatus, and when determining that the other apparatus is present in the communicable range, the second apparatus notifies the first apparatus of information for connecting to the other apparatus. The first apparatus receives from the second apparatus the information for connecting to the other apparatus, and connects to the other apparatus and to the network, based on the received information.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to communication setting technology forwireless communication.

2. Description of the Related Art

In recent years, an increasing number of products such as digitalcameras are equipped with a communication function that uses a wirelesslocal area network (LAN). Consequently, using the communicationfunction, a digital camera, for example, is capable of uploading acaptured image to a server on the Internet so that a plurality of userscan share the captured image. To transmit data to the Internet by usinga wireless LAN, the user of the camera needs to perform an operation toconnect the camera to one of the access points (APs) of the wireless LANthat are located in the proximity of the camera. In other words, theuser of the camera needs to input the identifier of an AP, or connectionparameters including security system information, a password, etc., tothe camera, and cause the camera to start connecting to the AP, in alocation where the camera can communicate with the AP.

Meanwhile, an increasing number of mobile communication devices such assmartphones are now equipped with a communication function that uses acellular system and a wireless LAN, and also near field communication(NFC), Bluetooth® low energy (BLE), etc. Note that NFC is acommunication standard that is suitable for, upon a touch operation as atrigger, transmitting and receiving data within a short period for whichthe device is being touched. Also note that BLE is a communicationstandard that is suitable for maintaining intermittent communication inwhich, for example, one communication sequence occurs every second orso, over a long period, with low power consumption.

Smartphones have a user interface that is suitable for inputtingcharacters, and in general, inputting connection parameters from thesedevices is easier than performing similar inputting from cameras in manycases. Furthermore, many smartphones have the function of automaticallyfinding and connecting to a connectable AP by using, for example,connection parameters obtained by reading a QR code™, or connectionparameters input in the past. However, it is not easy to equip cameraswith a function that is similar to the function of smartphones forreasons such as the cost, size, etc.

In this regard, using a camera having the function of receiving theconnection parameters of a wireless LAN from a smartphone by NFC, theuser can input the connection parameters to the camera and connect thecamera to the wireless LAN by simply touching the camera to thesmartphone. As such technology, Japanese Patent Laid-open No.2010-245748 discloses a technology by which a terminal device that isconnected to an AP transmits the connection parameters for the AP to acamera by NFC, and the camera connects to the same AP. Note thatequipping a camera with such a function does not greatly influence thecost, size, etc., of the camera because the only function to be added tothe camera is the NFC communication function.

However, when using the technology disclosed in Japanese PatentLaid-open No. 2010-245748 or the like, the user of the camera needs toperform an operation to start transferring the connection parameters byNFC in a state in which a connectable AP is present in its proximity andthe smartphone has the connection parameters for the AP. In other words,when performing a touch operation, the user needs to know that aconnectable AP is present in the proximity, and the smartphone has theconnection parameters for the AP, which impairs the convenience for theuser.

The present invention is made in view of the above problem, and in acommunication system including a plurality of apparatuses among whichinformation used for connecting to another apparatus is exchanged, thepresent invention provides a technology for improving user conveniencewhen the information used for the connection is exchanged.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided acommunication system that includes a first communication apparatus and asecond communication apparatus, the first communication apparatuscomprising: a communication unit configured to transmit to the secondcommunication apparatus a signal that requests information forconnecting to a network, and receive from the second communicationapparatus information for connecting to another communication apparatusthat is connectable to the network; and a connection unit configured toconnect to the other communication apparatus based on the receivedinformation, and connect to the network via the other communicationapparatus, the second communication apparatus comprising: an acceptingunit configured to accept the signal from the first communicationapparatus; a determination unit configured to, in response to acceptingthe signal, determine whether or not the other communication apparatusis present within a communicable range; and a notification unitconfigured to notify the first communication apparatus of theinformation for connecting to the other communication apparatus in thecase that the other communication apparatus is determined to be presentwithin the communicable range.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda communication apparatus, comprising: an accepting unit configured toaccept a signal that has been transmitted from a first othercommunication apparatus and that requests information for connecting toa network; a determination unit configured to determine whether or not asecond other communication apparatus connectable to the network ispresent within a communicable range in response to accepting the signal;and a notification unit configured to notify the first othercommunication apparatus of the information for connecting to the secondother communication apparatus in the case that the second othercommunication apparatus is determined to be present within thecommunicable range.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from thefollowing description of embodiments (with reference to the attacheddrawings).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention, andtogether with the description, serve to explain the principles of theinvention.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a wirelesscommunication system.

FIG. 2 is a sequence diagram showing a flow of BLE communication.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a functionalconfiguration of a camera 100.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow of processes performed by an APinformation requesting unit 303 of the camera 100.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of a functionalconfiguration of a smartphone 101.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow of processes performed by an APinformation notification unit 504 of the smartphone 101.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a format for AP informationtransmitted from the smartphone 101.

FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing an example of a flow of processesperformed by the camera 100 and the smartphone 101.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing another example of the functionalconfiguration of the camera 100.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed by an APidentifier setting unit 901.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of other processes performed bythe AP information notification unit 504 of the smartphone 101.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detailwith reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the relativearrangement of the components, the numerical expressions and numericalvalues set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of thepresent invention unless it is specifically stated otherwise. Each ofthe embodiments of the present invention described below can beimplemented solely or as a combination of a plurality of the embodimentsor features thereof where necessary or where the combination of elementsor features from individual embodiments in a single embodiment isbeneficial.

Embodiment 1 Wireless Communication System

FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a wireless communicationsystem according to the present embodiment. In this wirelesscommunication system, a camera 100, for example, uploads captured imagedata to a server 103 on a network (e.g. the Internet) via an accesspoint (AP) 102 of a wireless LAN. The camera 100 obtains AP information,which is for connecting to the AP 102, from a smartphone 101 by wirelesscommunication that is based on the Bluetooth low energy (BLE)communication standard. The AP information includes, for example,information indicating that the AP 102 is present in the proximity ofthe smartphone 101 at the timing when the AP information is transmitted,and connection parameters used for connecting to the AP 102. Theconnection parameters include, for example, the AP identifier of the AP102, information indicating the security system type of the AP 102, andpassword information required to connect to the AP 102 by using thesecurity system. An AP identifier is, for example, the identifier thatidentifies an AP, or the identifier of a wireless LAN network formed byan AP, and a service set identifier (SSID) or the like may be used as anAP identifier. Serving as a terminal in the wireless LAN, the camera 100connects to the AP 102 based on the AP information.

Note that, in the following description, it is the camera 100 and thesmartphone 101 that perform communication for establishing a wirelessLAN connection between the camera 100 and the AP 102, but these aremerely examples, and other devices having the communication function maybe used. In other words, the following accounts apply to, in generalterms, any system in which a first communication apparatus and a secondcommunication apparatus perform communication for establishing aconnection between the first communication apparatus and a thirdcommunication apparatus. Also note that the “third communicationapparatus” mentioned above is not necessarily a particular communicationapparatus, and may be any communication apparatus that can connect tothe server 103 on the network. In other words, the third communicationapparatus may be, for example, an access point of a wireless LAN that isconnected to a wired network and establishes a wireless network, or acommunication apparatus that is capable of connecting to a network forwirelessly connecting to the server 103.

Furthermore, although the following provides a description of a case inwhich the camera 100 and the smartphone 101 perform communication by BLEand communication between the camera 100 or the smartphone 101 and theAP 102 is performed via a wireless LAN, this is not a limitingdescription by any means. In other words, the camera 100 or thesmartphone 101 and the AP 102 may perform communication with each othervia a wireless network that uses a method other than the wireless LANmethod, and the camera 100 and the smartphone 101 may performcommunication with each other by using a method other than the BLEmethod. Also, in the case where a wireless LAN is used, the wireless LANto be used may be a wireless LAN complying with the series of IEEE802.11 standards for example, or any of the past, present, or futurewireless LANs. Similarly, other communication methods to be used may beany of the past, present, or future methods.

Outline of BLE Communication

Next, a description is given of the flow of BLE communication performedbetween the camera 100 and the smartphone 101 in the wirelesscommunication system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is asequence diagram showing an example of the flow of BLE communicationperformed by the camera 100 and the smartphone 101.

In this example, first, the camera 100 repeatedly and periodicallytransmits an advertising packet at predetermined intervals. Theadvertising packet mentioned here is, for example, a packet used forfinding the other party performing BLE communication, in order to obtainthe AP information that is necessary for the camera 100 to connect toanother communication apparatus (e.g. the AP 102) that is used forconnecting to a network. Upon receiving the advertising packet from thecamera 100, the smartphone 101 transmits a connection request to thecamera 100.

Consequently, a BLE communication connection is established between thecamera 100 and the smartphone 101, and thereafter a transition tointermittent communication occurs, by which data packets areperiodically exchanged at predetermined intervals. Note that in order toperform intermittent communication in synchronization with each other,the camera 100 needs to obtain from the smartphone 101 information aboutthe timing of starting intermittent communication, and information aboutthe intervals of the intermittent communication, and these pieces ofinformation are contained in the connection request packet. Also notethat when there is no data to be transmitted to the other party, thecamera 100 and the smartphone 101 exchange data packets at the intervalsof the intermittent communication. The communication apparatus on thetransmission side transmits information indicating whether or not datato be transmitted is contained in the data packet by including theinformation in the data packet, and the communication apparatus on thereception side can determine whether or not the packet includessignificant data by checking the information.

When it is necessary to connect to the AP 102 (connect to the network),the camera 100 requests the smartphone 101 for the AP information byusing the data packet for the subsequent sequence of intermittentcommunication. Note that the AP information requested here is notnecessarily the information of the particular AP 102, and may beinformation of any AP that can connect to the network. Therefore, thisrequest for the AP information can be regarded as a signal indicatingthat the camera 100 wishes to connect to the network. In other words,the data packet in this case can be regarded as a signal for notifyingthe smartphone 101 that the camera 100 wishes to connect to the network.

After receiving this request, upon detecting that an AP (e.g. the AP102) that can connect to the network is present in the proximity, thesmartphone 101 transmits the AP information of the AP by using the datapacket for the sequence of intermittent communication that is subsequentto the timing of detection. Note that “proximity” mentioned here is thecommunicable range for the smartphone 101 via the wireless LAN. Asdescribed above, this AP information includes, for example, informationindicating that the AP 102 is present in the proximity of the smartphone101 at the timing when the AP information is transmitted, and connectionparameters used for connecting to the AP 102.

Note that since the communicable range of BLE communication has asufficiently short distance, if the AP 102 is present in the proximityof the smartphone 101, it can be estimated that the camera 100, which isthe communication partner to the smartphone 101 by BLE communication, isalso present in the proximity of the AP 102. Therefore, by beingnotified that the smartphone 101 has detected the AP 102 in itsproximity, and being provided with the AP information of the AP 102, thecamera 100 can connect to the AP 102, and can connect to, for example,the server 103 via the AP 102.

Here, if the intervals of intermittent communication are long, there isthe possibility that during the period from when the smartphone 101detects the presence of the AP 102 in its proximity to when thesubsequent sequence of the intermittent communication occurs, the userholding the smartphone 101 moves to a location where the smartphone 101cannot perform wireless LAN communication with the AP 102. Therefore,the intervals of the intermittent communication may be set withconsideration of the movement of the smartphone 101, and may be set toapproximately 1 second, for example.

Note that the smartphone 101 has ordinary functions required to obtainthe AP identifiers of APs in its proximity. In other words, thesmartphone 101 has, for example, the function of obtaining the APidentifiers by performing a passive scan prescribed by the wireless LANstandard, and receiving a beacon that is periodically transmitted fromeach AP in its proximity. Furthermore, the smartphone 101 has a userinterface, from which the user makes an instruction to perform a passivescan. Note that the smartphone 101 may have the function ofautomatically performing a scan, instead of the user interface, or inaddition to the user interface. Furthermore, the smartphone 101 may havethe function of automatically performing a scan when it is in a locationwhere an AP is likely to be present, by using positional information.

Furthermore, the smartphone 101 has ordinary functions required toobtain the connection parameters other than the AP identifier as well,with respect to one AP out of the APs in its proximity. In other words,the smartphone 101 has, for example, the function of displaying a listof the AP identifiers found by a passive scan, and an acceptancefunction, which is the function of allowing the user to select one ofthe AP identifiers and accepting user input of the security system andpassword corresponding to the selected AP. Note that the acceptancefunction may be, for example, a software or hardware keyboard function,or the function of capturing and analyzing a QR code or the like. Also,the smartphone 101 may have the function of storing input contentaccepted in the past so that thereafter input of the same content by theuser can be avoided.

Configuration and Operation of Camera

Next, a description is given of an example of the configuration of thecamera 100 and the flow of processes performed by the camera 100. FIG. 3is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration ofthe camera 100. The camera 100 includes, for example, a wireless LANcommunication unit 301, a BLE communication unit 302, an AP informationrequesting unit 303, an image storing unit 304, and an image capturingunit 305. Note that functions not related to the present embodiment,such as a calling function, are not depicted in the drawing, and theirdescription has been omitted.

The wireless LAN communication unit 301 includes, for example, anordinary antenna, a modulation and demodulation function, and a protocolprocessing function, which are required for wireless LAN communication,and the wireless LAN communication unit 301 connects to the AP 102,reads out image data stored in the image storing unit 304 for example,and transmits it to the AP 102. Note that the image data transmitted tothe AP 102 is transferred to the server 103, via a network for example.The BLE communication unit 302 includes, for example, an ordinaryantenna, a modulation and demodulation function, and a protocolprocessing function, which are required for BLE communication, and, asdescribed above, the BLE communication unit 302 establishes a connectionwith the smartphone 101 by BLE communication and performs intermittentcommunication with the smartphone 101.

The AP information requesting unit 303 obtains the AP information fromthe smartphone 101 by using the BLE communication unit 302, and, basedon the AP information, outputs the timing at which the wireless LANcommunication unit 301 connects to the AP 102, and the connectionparameters for the AP 102, to the wireless LAN communication unit 301.The wireless LAN communication unit 301 connects to the AP 102 accordingto these pieces of information.

The image storing unit 304 stores, for example, image data captured bythe image capturing unit 305. The image capturing unit 305 performsimage capturing according to a user operation, generates image data, andstores it to the image storing unit 304. Note that the image storingunit 304 can store the image data of not only one image, but of aplurality of images.

Note that the camera 100 may have, for example, hardware modulesconstituting at least one CPU, at least one ROM, at least one RAM, andso on, which are not shown in FIG. 3, and the CPU may perform theprocesses represented by the flowchart described below by executing aprogram stored in the ROM.

FIG. 4 shows the flow of the processes performed in the camera 100,particularly by the AP information requesting unit 303. The APinformation requesting unit 303 starts its operation when triggered bythe turning on of the power of the camera. The AP information requestingunit 303 repeatedly transmits the advertising packet at predeterminedintervals by using the BLE communication unit 302 (step S401), andstarts periodically transmitting/receiving signals via intermittentcommunication in response to receiving a connection request from thesmartphone 101 (step S402).

After that, the AP information requesting unit 303 determines whether ornot there is any data to be transmitted to the server 103 (step S403).Here, the data to be transmitted to the server may be, for example,image data in the image storing unit 304, which has not been transmittedyet, or image data specified by the user. Upon the occurrence of data tobe transmitted (YES in step S403), the AP information requesting unit303 controls the BLE communication unit 302 to transmit the APinformation request by using the data packet for the subsequent sequenceof the intermittent communication (step S404). Then, the AP informationrequesting unit 303 waits to receive the AP information from thesmartphone 101 via a subsequent sequence of the intermittentcommunication (step S405).

Then, upon receiving the AP information, the AP information requestingunit 303 controls the wireless LAN communication unit 301 so that itconnects to the AP 102 by using the connection parameters contained inthe AP information thus received, thereby connecting the camera 100 tothe AP 102 (step S406). Next, the AP information requesting unit 303controls the wireless LAN communication unit 301 so that it transmitsthe data to be transmitted, which has been determined in step S403, tothe server 103 via the AP 102 (step S407). Then, upon completing thetransmission of the data to be transmitted, the AP informationrequesting unit 303 controls the wireless LAN communication unit 301 sothat it disconnects the connection with the AP 102 (step S408), andawaits the next occurrence of data to be transmitted (step S403).

Note that it is not necessary for the AP information requesting unit 303to perform a control to disconnect the connection with the AP (stepS408) immediately after transmitting the data to be transmitted to theserver 103 (step S407). In other words, the AP information requestingunit 303 may wait for a predetermined period of time after the data tobe transmitted has been transmitted to the server 103 (step S407),thereby confirming that there will be no data to be additionallytransmitted to the server, and then disconnect the connection with theAP (step S408). If it is determined within this predetermined periodthat there is further data to be transmitted to the server 103, the APinformation requesting unit 303 transmits this further data as well(step S407). Consequently, it is possible to avoid unnecessarilydisconnecting and/or re-establishing the connection via the wirelessLAN. Note that even while performing any of the steps above, the APinformation requesting unit 303 goes back to step S401 whenever BLEcommunication with the smartphone 101 is disconnected. In other words,while BLE communication is maintained after the request for the APinformation has been transmitted, it is possible to confirm that thecamera 100 wishes to connect to the network, unless the request iscancelled for a particular reason. However, if BLE communication isdisconnected, it will be impossible to confirm that, and accordingly theprocessing will be reset in such a case.

Note that if the camera 100 is not notified of the AP informationdespite maintaining the connection over the predetermined period by BLEcommunication, the camera 100 may determine not to make an attempt toconnect to the network for a while, and disconnect BLE communication.Then, after another predetermined period has elapsed, the camera 100 mayestablish BLE communication again, and make a request for the APinformation. Consequently, it is possible to prevent the camera 100 fromcontinuously performing periodic transmission/reception of signals viaBLE in a situation where the connection with the AP cannot beestablished, which leads to a reduction in power consumption by thecamera 100.

Configuration and Operation of Smartphone

Next, a description is given of an example of the functionalconfiguration of the smartphone 101 and the flow of processes performedby the smartphone 101. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example ofthe functional configuration of the smartphone 101. The smartphone 101includes, for example, a wireless LAN communication unit 501, a BLEcommunication unit 502, an AP information obtaining unit 503, and an APinformation notification unit 504. Note that functions not directlyrelated to the present embodiment, such as a calling function, are notdepicted in the drawing, and their description has been omitted fromthat of FIG. 5.

The wireless LAN communication unit 501 and the BLE communication unit502 are respectively similar to the wireless LAN communication unit 301and the BLE communication unit 302, and each has an ordinary antenna, amodulation and demodulation function, and a protocol processingfunction, which are required for wireless LAN communication and BLEcommunication. The AP information obtaining unit 503 has ordinaryfunctions required to obtain the AP identifiers of APs in the proximityof the smartphone 101, and the connection parameters of one of the APsin its proximity, as described above. By using these functions, afterreceiving the request for the AP information from the camera 100, the APinformation obtaining unit 503 detects the AP 102 in its proximity andobtains the connection parameters used for connecting to the AP 102. TheAP information notification unit 504 notifies the camera 100 of the APinformation obtained by the AP information obtaining unit 503 based onthe AP information request received from the camera 100 via the BLEcommunication unit 502. The AP information serves as a response to therequest. Note that the smartphone 101 may have, for example, hardwaremodules constituting at least one CPU, at least one ROM, at least oneRAM, and so on, which are not shown in FIG. 5, and the CPU may performthe processes represented by the flowchart described below by executinga program stored in the ROM.

FIG. 6 shows the flow of the processes performed in the smartphone 101,particularly by the AP information notification unit 504. The APinformation notification unit 504 starts its operation when triggered bythe turning on of the smartphone 101, or the activation of predeterminedapplication software in the smartphone 101. The AP informationnotification unit 504 first waits to receive an advertising packet fromthe camera 100 by using the BLE communication unit 502 (step S601).Then, upon receiving the advertising packet, the AP informationnotification unit 504 transmits a connection request to the camera 100,and starts periodic transmission/reception of packets via intermittentcommunication by BLE (step S602). Next, the AP information notificationunit 504 waits to receive a request for the AP information from thecamera 100 via intermittent communication by BLE (step S603).

Upon receiving the request for the AP information, the AP informationnotification unit 504 inquires the AP information obtaining unit 503 asto whether or not the AP 102 is present in the proximity (e.g. thecommunicable range of the smartphone 101), and as to whether or not itsconnection parameters have been obtained (step S604). Note that the APinformation obtaining unit 503 performs a search after receiving therequest for the AP information from the camera 100, for example, inorder to determine whether or not the AP is present in the proximity ofthe smartphone 101. Also, the AP information obtaining unit 503 maydetermine whether or not an AP is present in the proximity of thesmartphone 101 according to whether or not there is an AP to which thesmartphone 101 connects. Note that in the case of performing a searchfor an AP, the AP information obtaining unit 503 also performs theprocess of obtaining the connection parameters for connecting to the APfound in the search. On the other hand, when there is an AP that isconnected, it is unnecessary for the AP information obtaining unit 503to newly obtain connection parameters because the purpose can besatisfied by notification of the connection parameters that are beingused for the connection.

When the AP 102 is present in the proximity and its connectionparameters have been obtained (YES in step S604), the AP informationnotification unit 504 controls the BLE communication unit 502 so that ittransmits the AP information over the subsequent sequence ofintermittent communication (step S605). After that, the AP informationnotification unit 504 goes back to step S603, and waits to receive arequest for the AP information again. The AP information includes, forexample, information indicating that the AP 102 is present in theproximity at the timing when the AP information is transmitted, and theconnection parameters used for connecting to the AP 102.

On the other hand, when the AP 102 is not present in the proximity, orits connection parameters have not been obtained (NO in step S604), theAP information notification unit 504 waits until the AP 102 is presentin the proximity and its connection parameters are obtained. Note thateven while performing any of the steps above, the AP informationnotification unit 504 goes back to step S601 whenever BLE communicationwith the camera 100 is disconnected. In other words, while BLEcommunication is maintained after the request for the AP information hasbeen received, it is possible to confirm that the camera 100 wishes toconnect to the network, unless the request is cancelled for a particularreason. However, if BLE communication is disconnected, it will beimpossible to confirm that, and accordingly the processing will be resetin such a case.

Here, a description is given of the format for the AP informationtransmitted from the smartphone 101, with reference to FIG. 7. In FIG.7, a data packet 700 is a BLE data packet including AP information. Thedata packet 700 includes a preamble 701, an access address 702, a PDU(Protocol Data Unit) 703, and a CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) 704. Thepreamble 701 is used for determining the beginning of the packet. Theaccess address 702 represents that communication is performed betweenthe camera 100 and the smartphone 101. The CRC 704 is used for errordetection, and is calculated based on the content of the PDU 703.

Here, the PDU 703 is configured to include a header 711 and a payload712, and the header 711 includes information indicating that this packetis a data packet, and information indicating the length of the payload712. When there is no data to be transmitted via intermittentcommunication, this length is 0. However, in a data packet including theAP information, the value of the length is equal to or greater than 1.The payload 712 includes a data type 721, an AP identifier 722, asecurity system type 723, and a password 724. The data type 721 stores avalue indicating that this data packet includes AP information. Theinformation indicated by the connection parameters for the AP identifiedby the AP identifier 722 is stored in the AP identifier 722, thesecurity system type 723, and the password 724.

Upon receiving this data packet, the camera 100 can find out that thedata packet includes AP information by reading the value of the datatype 721, and accordingly can find out the timing at which the APinformation has been transmitted. In other words, the data type 721 isinformation indicating whether or not the AP specified by the APidentifier 722 is present in the proximity (communicable range) of thesmartphone 101 at the timing of the transmission of the data packet.

Note that according to the BLE communication standard, the header 711may also include information indicating whether or not it is followed bya data packet. When the size of the connection parameters is large, theconnection parameters may be divided into a plurality of data packets byusing the information before being transmitted. Also, the AP informationrequesting unit 303 may transmit the request for the AP information inthe form of a data packet from the camera 100 to the smartphone 101 aswith the above case, by setting the value of the data type 721 in thePDU to be a value indicating that this data packet is a request for theAP information.

Note that the data packet format above is merely an example, and the APinformation may be transmitted in other formats.

Flow of Processes Performed in Wireless Communication System

Next, a description is given of the flow of the processes performedbetween the camera 100 and the smartphone 101, with reference to FIG. 8.Note that the following describes, for example, a case where the usergoes out carrying the camera 100 and the smartphone 101, captures animage with the camera 100, and goes back home, and then the smartphone101 connects to the AP at the home.

First, in response to the user turning on the power of the smartphone101 at time 801, the smartphone 101 enters into the state of waiting toreceive an advertising packet (step S601). Next, in response to the userturning on the power of the camera 100 at time 802, an advertisingpacket is transmitted from the camera 100 at time 803 (step S402). Inresponse to this advertising packet, the smartphone 101 transmits aconnection request at time 804 (step S602). Consequently, intermittentcommunication between the camera 100 and the smartphone 101 via BLEstarts (step S403, step S602), and the smartphone 101 enters into thestate of waiting for a request for the AP information from the camera100 (step S603).

After that, when the user performs an image capturing operation with thecamera 100 at time 805, image data to be transmitted occurs in thecamera 100. Accordingly, the camera 100 transmits a request for the APinformation to the smartphone 101 by the sequence of the intermittentcommunication at time 806, and comes into the state of waiting toreceive the AP information (steps S403 to S405). Upon receiving therequest for the AP information, the smartphone 101 comes into the stateof waiting for the presence of an AP within the communicable range ofthe smartphone 101 itself, and waiting for obtaining the AP informationof the AP (step S604).

When the user goes back home at time 807, the smartphone 101 connects tothe AP at the user's home as operated by the user or automatically, andconsequently the smartphone 101 enters into the situation where an AP ispresent in its proximity and the connection parameters for the AP havebeen obtained. Accordingly, the smartphone 101 transmits the APinformation to the camera 100 at time 808 when the subsequent sequenceof the intermittent communication occurs (step S605). At the time ofreceiving the AP information, the camera 100 can recognize the presenceof a connectable AP in its proximity, and simultaneously, it can obtainthe connection parameters for the AP. Accordingly, at time 809, thecamera 100 connects to the AP that corresponds to the AP informationnotified by the smartphone 101, and transmits the captured image to theserver on the network via the AP (step S406, step S407). After that,upon completing the data transmission, the camera 100 disconnects theconnection with the AP (step S408).

As described above, although only the power-on operation at the time 802and the image capturing operation at the time 805 are the operationsperformed by the user on the camera 100, the camera 100 canautomatically connect to the AP at the user's home and transmit theimage to the server. Note that the connecting of the smartphone 101 tothe AP at the user's home at the time 807 is, in many cases, performedmanually or automatically regardless of the presence of the camera 100.This is because wireless LAN communication, when compared to cellularcommunication, is faster and cheaper, and allows users to use servicessuch as calling and data communication almost in the same manner as withcellular communication, and, in many cases, wireless LAN communicationis preferentially used by smartphones in locations where an AP ispresent. Therefore, according to the wireless communication systemaccording to the present embodiment, it is possible to connect thecamera to the network without performing an operation that is solely forconnecting the camera to the wireless LAN, and thus user convenience isimproved. Also, the camera according to the present embodiment can berealized by simply adding only the BLE communication function to anordinary camera, which does not cause a significant increase in size orcost compared to adding the NFC communication function.

Embodiment 2

In Embodiment 1, an example is described in which the camera 100transmits a request for AP information used for connecting to an AP thatcan connect to the network without specifying the AP. In contrast, inthe present embodiment a case is described where the camera 100specifies a particular AP, and makes a request for the AP information ofthe particular AP.

FIG. 9 shows an example of the functional configuration of the camera100 according to the present embodiment. The camera 100 according to thepresent embodiment has a similar configuration to the configurationrepresented by the block diagram shown in FIG. 3 described forEmbodiment 1, except that an AP identifier setting unit 901 is added.Therefore, the following describes the differences from Embodiment 1,and the description of the parts having similar functions as inEmbodiment 1 has been omitted.

The AP identifier setting unit 901 has an interface for, when the APinformation requesting unit 303 detects in step S406 shown in FIG. 4that AP information is obtained, displaying a screen as shown in FIG. 10and accepting an operation, based on the AP identifier contained in theAP information. In other words, the AP identifier setting unit 901 hasthe function of showing connectable APs to the user, and obtaining thedesignation of an AP to connect to from the user. Furthermore, the APidentifier setting unit 901 stores the connection parameters containedin the AP information when the user selects “YES” in FIG. 10. Then, theAP identifier setting unit 901 controls the AP information requestingunit 303 so that, when transmitting an AP information request later instep S404, the AP information requesting unit 303 transmits the APinformation request together with the AP identifier, which is containedin the connection parameters, by including it in the AP informationrequest.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the flow of processes performed by the APinformation notification unit 504 of the smartphone 101 according to thepresent embodiment. Note that in FIG. 11 the steps of performing thesame process as in FIG. 6 are given the same reference numbers, and thedescription of them has been omitted unless necessary.

After waiting to receive an AP information request via intermittentcommunication (step S603), the AP information notification unit 504determines whether or not the received AP information request containsan AP identifier (step S1101). Then, when the AP information requestdoes not contain an AP identifier (NO in step S1101), the AP informationnotification unit 504 proceeds to step S604, and performs the sameprocesses as in Embodiment 1. On the other hand, when an AP identifieris contained (YES in step S1101), the AP information notification unit504 waits until the AP information obtaining unit 503 detects that theAP having the AP identifier is present in its proximity (step S1102).Then, upon the detection of the AP by the AP information obtaining unit503 (YES in step S1102), the AP information notification unit 504proceeds to step S605, and transmits its AP information to the camera100. Note that in this case there is the possibility that the camera 100is holding the connection parameters for the AP because the APinformation to be transmitted is that of the AP that has been specifiedfrom the camera 100. In this case, namely the case where the camera 100is holding the connection parameters for the detected AP, it isunnecessary for the smartphone 101 to transmit the connection parameterswhen transmitting the AP information.

In this way, the AP information notification unit 504 notifies only ofthe AP information of the AP that has the AP identifier specified fromthe camera 100. In other words, by storing the information of the AP athome to the camera 100 by using the interface shown in FIG. 10, the usercan enable the camera 100 to connect only to the AP at home from thenon. Consequently, the user can perform uploading from the camera 100 tothe server via the AP at home, which has a relatively stable connectionstatus, and it is therefore possible to reduce the possibility thatuploading results in failure due to connection to an AP having anunstable connection status while the user is moving outside the home.

In each of the embodiments above, it has been explained that a requestfor AP information can be transmitted in the form of a data packet, inwhich the data type 721 having a predetermined value is included in thePDU. However, according to the BLE communication standard, a request forAP information can be included in the PDU of an advertising packet, in asimilar format. Therefore, a request for AP information may betransmitted in the form of an advertising packet instead of a datapacket. Furthermore, when BLE communication between the camera 100 andthe smartphone 101 is not used for any other purpose, transmission of anadvertising packet in which the PDU does not contain the data type 721may be regarded as transmission of a request for AP information. In bothcases, in response to receiving the advertising packet, the smartphone101 can determine that it has received a request for AP information.

In addition, in each of the embodiments above, it is assumed that the APinformation notification unit 504 waits until the AP informationobtaining unit 503 obtains the AP information in step S604 in FIG. 6either according to a user operation or automatically. Instead ofperforming this process, the AP information notification unit 504 mayrequest the AP information obtaining unit 503 to perform a passive scanwhen receiving a request for AP information via intermittentcommunication in step S603. Consequently, when a connectable AP ispresent in the proximity when the user captures an image, the user canconnect the camera to the AP immediately after capturing the image, andupload the captured image to the server.

Furthermore, when the BLE communication unit 302 is implemented in thecamera 100 as an independent communication module, the AP informationrequesting unit 303 may transition to the sleep state after transmittinga request for AP information in step S404 in FIG. 4. Note that, aftertransmitting a request for AP information, the camera 100 may cause, notonly the AP information requesting unit 303, but also some of thefunctions of the camera 100, except for the functions of the BLEcommunication unit 302, to transition to the sleep state. In otherwords, some independent communication modules output an interruptionsignal when receiving a data packet that is not empty. By using thisinterruption signal as a wakeup signal, it is possible to reduce thepower consumption of the camera 100 during the period from the time 806in FIG. 8, at which a request for AP information is transmitted, to thetime 808, at which the AP information is received. Consequently, thefrequency with which the user charges the battery of the camera can bereduced, and the convenience can be improved.

According to the present invention, in a communication system includinga plurality of apparatuses among which information used for connectingto another apparatus is exchanged, user convenience when the informationused for the connection is exchanged can be improved.

Other Embodiments

Embodiment(s) of the present invention can also be realized by acomputer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computerexecutable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on astorage medium (which may also be referred to more fully as a‘non-transitory computer-readable storage medium’) to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/orthat includes one or more circuits (e.g., application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the functions of one or moreof the above-described embodiment(s), and by a method performed by thecomputer of the system or apparatus by, for example, reading out andexecuting the computer executable instructions from the storage mediumto perform the functions of one or more of the above-describedembodiment(s) and/or controlling the one or more circuits to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). Thecomputer may comprise one or more processors (e.g., central processingunit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network ofseparate computers or separate processors to read out and execute thecomputer executable instructions. The computer executable instructionsmay be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or thestorage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or moreof a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM),a storage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

While the present invention has been described with reference toembodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited tothe disclosed embodiments. It will of course be understood that thisinvention has been described above by way of example only, and thatmodifications of detail can be made within the scope of this invention.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2014-204214, filed Oct. 2, 2014, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. A communication system that includes a firstcommunication apparatus and a second communication apparatus, the firstcommunication apparatus comprising: a communication unit configured totransmit to the second communication apparatus a signal that requestsinformation for connecting to a network, and receive from the secondcommunication apparatus information for connecting to anothercommunication apparatus that is connectable to the network; and aconnection unit configured to connect to the other communicationapparatus based on the received information, and connect to the networkvia the other communication apparatus, the second communicationapparatus comprising: an accepting unit configured to accept the signalfrom the first communication apparatus; a determination unit configuredto, in response to accepting the signal, determine whether or not theother communication apparatus is present within a communicable range;and a notification unit configured to notify the first communicationapparatus of the information for connecting to the other communicationapparatus in the case that the other communication apparatus isdetermined to be present within the communicable range.
 2. Acommunication apparatus, comprising: an accepting unit configured toaccept a signal that has been transmitted from a first othercommunication apparatus and that requests information for connecting toa network; a determination unit configured to determine whether or not asecond other communication apparatus connectable to the network ispresent within a communicable range in response to accepting the signal;and a notification unit configured to notify the first othercommunication apparatus of the information for connecting to the secondother communication apparatus in the case that the second othercommunication apparatus is determined to be present within thecommunicable range.
 3. The communication apparatus according to claim 2,wherein the notification unit transmits to the first other communicationapparatus a signal including information that indicates whether or notthe second other communication apparatus is present within thecommunicable range by performing a periodic signal transmission andreception.
 4. The communication apparatus according to claim 3, wherein,when a signal indicating that the second other communication apparatusis present within the communicable range is transmitted to the firstother communication apparatus by the periodic signal transmission andreception, the notification unit includes the information for connectingto the second other communication apparatus in the signal, therebynotifying the information to the first other communication apparatus. 5.The communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the acceptingunit accepts a signal that is transmitted from the first othercommunication apparatus and that is for establishing a connectionbetween the first other communication apparatus and the communicationapparatus, the signal serving as the signal that is transmitted from thefirst other communication apparatus and that requests the informationfor connecting to the network.
 6. The communication apparatus accordingto claim 2, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not thesecond other communication apparatus is present within the communicablerange by determining whether or not the communication apparatus isconnected to the second other communication apparatus.
 7. Thecommunication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the determinationunit determines whether or not the second other communication apparatusis present within the communicable range by performing a search afterthe signal that is transmitted from the first other communicationapparatus and that requests the information for connecting to thenetwork is accepted.
 8. The communication apparatus according to claim2, wherein the information for connecting to the second othercommunication apparatus contains at least one of: informationidentifying the second other communication apparatus or informationidentifying a wireless network formed by the second other communicationapparatus; a type of security system used by the second othercommunication apparatus; and a password for connecting to the secondother communication apparatus by using the security system.
 9. Thecommunication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the second othercommunication apparatus is a wireless LAN access point, and the firstother communication apparatus and the communication apparatus arewireless LAN terminals.
 10. The communication apparatus according toclaim 2, wherein the notification unit performs communication by usingBluetooth Low Energy, and the first other communication apparatusconnects to the second other communication apparatus by using a wirelessLAN complying with IEEE 802.11 standards.
 11. A communication method fora communication system including a first communication apparatus and asecond communication apparatus, comprising: transmitting, by the firstcommunication apparatus, a signal that requests information forconnecting to a network, to the second communication apparatus;accepting, by the second communication apparatus, the signal from thefirst communication apparatus; determining, by the second communicationapparatus, whether or not another communication apparatus that isconnectable to the network is present within a communicable range of thesecond communication apparatus in response to accepting the signal;notifying, by the second communication apparatus, the firstcommunication apparatus of the information for connecting to the othercommunication apparatus in the case that the other communicationapparatus is determined to be present within the communicable range;receiving, by the first communication apparatus, the information forconnecting to the other communication apparatus, from the secondcommunication apparatus; and connecting, by the first communicationapparatus, to the other communication apparatus based on the receivedinformation, and connecting to the network via the other communicationapparatus.
 12. A communication apparatus control method, comprising:accepting a signal that has been transmitted from a first othercommunication apparatus and that requests information for connecting toa network; determining whether or not a second other communicationapparatus connectable to the network is present within a communicablerange in response to accepting the signal; and notifying the first othercommunication apparatus of the information for connecting to the secondother communication apparatus in the case that the second othercommunication apparatus is determined to be present within thecommunicable range.
 13. A non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium storing a computer program for causing a computer provided in acommunication apparatus to execute steps of a communication apparatuscontrol method, the communication apparatus control method comprising:accepting a signal that has been transmitted from a first othercommunication apparatus and that requests information for connecting toa network; determining whether or not a second other communicationapparatus connectable to the network is present within a communicablerange in response to accepting the signal; and notifying the first othercommunication apparatus of the information for connecting to the secondother communication apparatus in the case that the second othercommunication apparatus is determined to be present within thecommunicable range.